She Shed Update for 18 November 2019

I have been promising you an update on the she shed's progress and here it is. It isn't going too fast but then that's okay because I really don't care to move into it in the winter months.  although, I will be using a space heater to heat it when I am moved in. I have to stop myself from shopping for things for it because I intend to repurpose things from the house but shopping is so much fun! 😃 Since I took the video the other day, the drywall has been partially installed. Enjoy the video....



Best wishes for all...

Sharon

New Snowbird Kitchen

I have been asked several times recently about how the remodel on our snowbird kitchen turned out. It turned out GREAT! Husband did a fantastic job with some assistance from our neighbor. Everything had to be done on the "cheap." The sink and faucets are "hand-me-downs" from someone who had recently remodeled their kitchen. The cabinets mainly came from a scratch and dent store and a few were unfinished ones from Home Depot. The flooring was purchased with a military discount. The original cabinets were warped and sagging. They were made from particle board and had been water damaged. The original counters slanted. The flooring was in bad shape both functionally and aesthetically. I had tried to "dress things up" a bit with my red accessories and small appliances but it didn't help much. The following slide show video gives you a look at how things ended up. Enjoy!

Hugs,
Sharon

Husband Finished His Chores

A week ago our combination microwave and exhaust vent died. Since this is the 2nd one we've been through we decided to get an "old fashioned" counter top microwave and the traditional range vent hood. After removing the old microwave, we noticed our tile back splash had been tiled around the bottom edge of the old microwave and  we had to put something there that would coordinate/complement the old. I walked into the kitchen a few minutes ago and saw that Ray finally finished up the back splash  The new vent is great too; the bottom is sealed and cleanup is a snap. Here's the new look:

Husband told me to let you know that the kitchen is not crooked, my photography is! Take care...

Been Thinking about Making Homemade Fabric Softener

Now that I'm a veteran-user of homemade laundry soap, I've been thinking about making my own fabric softener too.  Here's a link to an easy sounding concoction.  I just bought a bottle of softener so when it's about gone I'll whip up a batch of this. DH is worried that it would give him a vinegar-like smell.  Hmmm, you can scent it with essential oils though... Has anyone made this or a similar softener?  Let me know what you think.

“May those who love us, love us; and those who don't love us, may God turn their hearts; and if He doesn't turn their hearts, may he turn their ankles so we'll know them by their limping.”  An Irish Blessing

Search Amazon.com for fabric softener

Finished Batch of Laundry Soap!

Here are a couple pictures of the finished batch of laundry soap.  Check out how much you'll end up with if you make it.  I used a regular Rubbermaid container because it looked and felt more heavy duty than the other brands.  Here's a hint--with this large quantity of ingredients to mix, I ended up using my hands instead of a big spoon.  Some of y'all might want to wear gloves when doing the mixing.  I didn't because I already have old lady hands--lol!  The container I mixed in was the perfect size because of the extra room in it for mixing action.  Have a great weekend everyone!

Search Amazon.com for rubbermaid roughneck

Homemade Laundry Soap Tested

I tested my homemade laundry soap and so far it's great!  I haven't had any heavily soiled clothes to wash so I'll hold final judgement until I wash some of them.  So far, it's pretty darned good.    It was a little more expensive to make than I anticipated.  Of course, if I wouldn't have dropped broke part of the had a food processor malfunction (that I grated the soap with) then I wouldn't be looking at the cost of a new one before I start canning tomato sauce this summer.  Anyway, maybe it was time for a new one.  Y'all have a nice, clean clothes day lol!

I Made My Own Laundry Soap Today

I've been talking about making my own laundry soap for some time now and I finally got around to doing it today. I wanted a powdered soap--why dilute it and have to have extra room to store it? I found this page and used recipe #9.  I made a 1/2 batch of it.  For the soap, I used 4 bars of ivory soap and it came out very close to the proper amount.  At the moment, I have a load washing with my new soap. I'm really looking forward to seeing how it turns out.  I used the measuring cup from my store-bought detergent and used a sharpie to mark a line at the 1/4 cup measurement.  As I was talking to my uncle the other day, he told me that my grandmother would use her little scraps of bath soap and shave them before tossing in the washing machine to do her laundry with.  Sounds like Grandma had how-to-do laundry cheaply down pat.  Hope this works out!  Y'all have a nice week...